Dodgers outfielder Manny Ramirez will never be looked at the same way. From dreadlocks to brain locks, he was baseball's class clown who just happened to be arguably his generation's greatest hitter. Now he's just another cheater, his face on the Mount Rushmore of scandal alongside Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez.

Ramirez failed a drug test and was suspended for 50 games Thursday by Major League Baseball.

"From his uniform number, to his uniform to his hair, he's a joke. A clown," said Hall of Famer Rich "Goose" Gossage, the most accomplished player in Colorado history. "To get caught with all the testing they do now, he's the village idiot. Unbelievable."

Ramirez, in a written statement, claimed the positive test came as a result of medication he received from a personal physician. He apologized to fans for "this whole situation." The commissioner's office announced the suspension but not the specific violation.

News outlets reported that Ramirez tested for high levels of artificial testosterone in spring training, not enough to suspend him but enough for further investigation. He was ultimately suspended for documented use of the female fertility drug human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), often used by athletes to generate production of testosterone after steroid use.

Ramirez did not appeal the ruling and began immediately serving a suspension that will cost him $7.

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7 million of his guaranteed $25 million salary. He offered the following explanation through a statement issued by the players union.

"Recently I saw a physician for a personal health issue. He gave me a medication, not a steroid, which he thought was OK to give me. Unfortunately, the medication was banned under our drug policy. Under the policy that mistake is now my responsibility."

2nd-highest-paid player

In a sport that has become numb to drug scandals after Rod riguez's steroids admission three months ago, Ramirez's suspension was still jarring. He's the game's second-highest-paid player behind Rodriguez and the owner of 533 career home runs and two World Series rings. He was going to help baseball distance itself from its sordid past involving performance-enhancing drugs. Now, he's become a stark reminder of it.

"Honestly, this whole thing has become a mess," said Rockies' pitcher Jason Hammel. "I wish we could just start over."

The Cardinals' Albert Pujols, regarded as baseball's best all-round slugger, now stands alone as the next player in line to "save baseball," so to speak.

"It's disappointing, terrible news," Pujols said Thursday. "He made a personal choice, and it was the wrong one."

Seattle's Ken Griffey Jr., with 613 career home runs, is the most notable active member of the 500 home run club who has not been ensnared in the steroids scandal. Jim Thome of the Chicago White Sox, with 545 career home runs, also has not been linked.

Rockies fans know Ramirez as the player who almost singlehandedly won the National League West last summer. After L.A. acquired him from the Red Sox, who paid him to go away after a bitter falling out, Ramirez hit .396 with 17 home runs and 53 RBIs in 53 games. He's been their best player this season as the Dodgers raced to a 21-8 start.

"For a team playing that well to have that happen, it's a bombshell," Rockies hitting instructor Don Baylor said. "To me, I just can't see why anyone would put something in their body that the team doctor or trainer hasn't checked out."

Returns to game July 3

The Dodgers renamed an entire section of their stands "Mannywood" and marketed their team around the enigmatic outfielder. While the Dodgers said they will welcome him back on July 3, everything has changed.

His statistics are worthy of Cooperstown, but Hall of Fame voters have not looked kindly on any players linked to performance-enhancing drugs. Mark McGwire has received less than a quarter of the vote in two years on the ballot, and he's never been linked to a positive test.

Rockies reliever Alan Embree, a teammate of Ramirez's in Boston and Cleveland, cautioned against a rush to judgment.

"I don't think he would deliberately do something to jeopardize his team," Embree said. "I think he would be vulnerable to trusting what a doctor tells him. I wouldn't persecute him yet."

For others, it's too late.

"I don't get it. These guys know they are getting tested," San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "It's not good for the game. It's not good for the kids. They look up these players. It's sad and disappointing."

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